WHEN Richard Wicker returned to his home after four years in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War, he kept his experiences to himself.

The RAF volunteer reserve had been shot down over Germany in August 1940 and spent the rest of the war as a prisoner in tortuous conditions.

By the time he returned to his village of Mayfield, south east of Crowborough, he weighed just seven and a half stone.

From then on until his death at the age of 67 in 1980, Richard never spoke about his horrific experience in the war.

But two years ago, daughter Janet Bradford unearthed a mysterious brown envelope and handed it to her son, David.

That envelope contained hidden manuscripts Richard had written after the war but had never shown anyone, not even his close family.

“As soon as I read it I really wanted to do something with it,” said grandson David, who was born 18 months after Richard’s death.

“It was this eloquent, beautiful account of his life before and during the war.

“At one point he documents moment-by-moment the ferry ride home, seeing Britain for the first time in almost five years.

“It was very emotional for me.”

Journalist David said it was a “surreal” experience reading about the grandfather he had never met.

“I felt like I bonded with him reading about these experiences he had gone through and knowing that we shared that love of writing,” said David, from Lewes.

“For me it was weird because it felt like I was meeting the grandfather I had never known, it was quite mysterious.

“ I almost wanted to hear his voice as I read it. It was really quite strange.”

David has now edited and published Richard’s memoirs as a book titled “We Happy Few”.

The 37 year-old said it was what his grandad would have wanted.

He said: “I think there was some feeling that he had planned to get his manuscripts published.

“But life took over and he never took it any further.”

The book will launch on July 28 and is dedicated to David’s grandmother Winifred Stone, who had no idea of her husband’s manuscripts.

She sadly passed away two weeks ago, but David said she enjoyed reading his memoirs.

David said: “My whole family has spoken about him with great affection.”